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AI Tooling Cost Management

Context Scoping

Summary

An AI tool request is limited to the minimum context required for the task.

Standards

  1. std-ai-context-scoping-01 AI tool requests SHOULD contain only context relevant and reasonably necessary to complete the task.
  2. std-ai-context-scoping-02 Broad, whole-repository context SHOULD be reserved for cases where narrower, targeted context has already failed.

Implements These Principles

Session Management

Summary

A new AI tool session is used for each unrelated task, and long-running sessions are reset or summarised before their context grows unbounded.

Standards

  1. std-ai-session-management-01 A new AI tool session SHOULD be started when switching to an unrelated task if the existing session history is no longer relevant.
  2. std-ai-session-management-02 Developers SHOULD periodically reset or summarise long-running sessions to prevent unbounded context accumulation.

Implements These Principles

Model Selection & Reasoning

Summary

Model choice and reasoning effort are proportionate to the task's complexity.

Standards

  1. std-ai-model-selection-reasoning-01 AI tools SHOULD use automatic or cost-aware model selection by default.
  2. std-ai-model-selection-reasoning-02 Maximum reasoning effort or extended-thinking modes SHOULD be reserved for genuinely complex or ambiguous tasks.

Implements These Principles

Custom Instructions & Tooling

Summary

Custom instructions contain only reusable context, and tools not required by the project remain disabled.

Standards

  1. std-ai-custom-instructions-tooling-01 Organisation-wide and project-level custom instructions SHOULD contain only context that applies across the requests that receive them.
  2. std-ai-custom-instructions-tooling-02 Organisation-wide and project-level custom instructions SHOULD remain stable between requests to benefit from provider-side caching and avoid repeated cost.
  3. std-ai-custom-instructions-tooling-03 Tools, extensions, or integrations not required for the current project SHOULD be disabled because their definitions may be included in every request regardless of use.

Implements These Principles

Cost Monitoring & Pricing

Summary

AI tooling cost and usage are monitored and attributed, and responsible personnel reassess practices after material vendor pricing changes.

Standards

  1. std-ai-cost-monitoring-pricing-01 Cost or usage attributable to AI tooling SHOULD be monitored.
  2. std-ai-cost-monitoring-pricing-02 Cost or usage attributable to AI tooling SHOULD be attributed.
  3. std-ai-cost-monitoring-pricing-03 AI tooling cost estimates SHOULD use current vendor billing and pricing models.
  4. std-ai-cost-monitoring-pricing-04 Personnel responsible for AI tooling adoption MUST reassess usage practices after a material change to a vendor's billing or pricing model.

Implements These Principles

Cost Optimisation Review

Summary

Teams periodically re-measure cost-optimisation practices in their own context.

Standards

  1. std-ai-cost-optimisation-review-01 Teams SHOULD periodically measure the effect of AI cost-optimisation practices on their AI tool usage and cost.
  2. std-ai-cost-optimisation-review-02 Teams SHOULD evaluate each cost-optimisation practice in their own context because its effectiveness may vary by model, workload, and codebase.

Implements These Principles